In the Moon
by Ash M. Knight
Summary: Zelena, having captured Emma, tells her Regina's secret. Two-shot- SwanQueen.
1. Chapter 1: In the Moon

"What are you talking about?" Emma asked breathily, jerking on the chains that bound her wrists.

"She sends half her heart to the moon each night, praying you'll look up at the sky and see her love," the witch cackled.

Stunned, Emma stared at the witch in disbelief and wondered at the truth of her words. The witch simply laughed and watched the blonde's expression turn from genuine surprise and shock to pure, unadulterated hatred.

"Let me see her!" the savior screamed, glaring harshly with bright, fiery eyes.

"Not a chance, sweetheart! You will never see her again. In fact, the only people you'll be seeing from now on are me and my guards. You can forget about your pathetic little family."

The shimmer of the witch's green skin was illuminated by the moonlight pouring in from the tiny window of the cell, making her appearance more menacing and her features far more alarming. Those stark features were accentuated by the light, emphasizing her wickedness. As soon as Emma opened her mouth to speak, she was silenced.

"Ah, ah, ah. I think not, Miss Swan. This is not a discussion. I'll not entertain your snide remarks. In fact, I intend to leave you alone to rot in here, with nothing but your bitter memories to keep you company."

"You bitch," Emma spat, fighting her chains once more.

The witch shot a blast of magic that wrapped itself around Emma's wrists and electrified her veins, making her howl in pain. The witch screamed with laughter as she locked the cell and turned away.

Heart ablaze, Emma looked toward the sky, but couldn't find the moon.

In a cell on the other side of the castle's massive dungeon, the queen also sat bound in chains.

"She doesn't love you, you know," the witch cackled, staring as she waited to see the queen's broken expression.

Sinking inside, Regina sadly whispered, "I know," and shut her eyes. "When can I see my son?"

"He's safe, Regina, with Robin."

"Henry's here?" she exclaimed, then gasped, "Robin!? What about Emma? Neal? The Charmings?"

"Neal and the Charmings are dead."

More bellowing laughter filled the cell, shaking Regina's heart, exaggerating the cracks that were already there.

"And Emma?"

"Oh, I can assure you, she is just as trapped as you are, my dear. She broke like a weak stallion as soon as I bound her, and I can promise you, she will never leave or see your son again."

"Why can't you just kill me?" the queen groaned softly under her breath, leaving her gaze stuck on the straw-covered stone floor.

"Oh, I can. I simply won't. Don't you see? That's too easy. I don't want to end your suffering. Instead, I'm going to take away your happiness."

"I have no happiness for you to take."

"I've taken your son. I've taken Emma!"

"I didn't have him before you brought me here, and I never had her."

"That's true," the witch laughed, "and you never will."

"I know."

"Well, you certainly are easy to break, too. No fun at all. Actually, it's sort of pathetic."

"Without Henry, I'm nothing."

"I don't think that's quite true, Regina. Before you knew you'd never have Emma, you were _determined _to beat me. Now, you're just a pile of weakness. The _definition_ of weakness."

"I know."

"Are you admitting that your unattainable love is your weakness?"

"No!" Regina finally snapped, denying what she knew was true.

The insincerity of the exclamation was obvious to the witch, and she picked up on it instantly.

"Deny it if you wish, but I think you know the truth. Emma is your weakness! How heartbreaking. The woman you want would never look at you twice."

_She cares for me. Doesn't she? _Regina asked herself, praying her words were true. After all, Emma had defended her numerous times. If nothing else, Emma trusted her. That alone was worth something, even if that was all it was. Now that she was thinking about it, she was sure that it was simply a matter of Emma being a good person. She wanted to do the right thing, and that was why she'd stuck up for Regina - simply to do what was right. Knowing this inside, nothing else seemed to matter, except for her son.

"Well," the witch started with a grin, "I'll leave you alone with your broken, pathetic heart now. I look forward to taunting you later."

"It doesn't matter, you know," Regina told her. "I have nothing left."

"I know," her green-faced tormentor giggled. "That's exactly what makes this so much fun."

And with that, she did exactly as promised and left the queen alone with her broken heart.


	2. Chapter 2: Bruises

Emma sat on the bench in her cell staring out the window until her eyes were too heavy to hold open. With her head against the cold stone wall, she fell into a fitful sleep and dreamed of losing all the things that mattered. Woken by the quiet jingling of elegant diamond-encrusted jewelry, her eyes shot open as her gaze moved to the door of the cell.

"What do you want?" she groaned, gripping the bench until her knuckles whitened and her face flooded with hot, red anger.

"To torture you, my dear," the witch mused. "What else?"

"What now? Are you going to have your guards beat me? I don't care."

"No. I've come to see what you have to say about what I told you last night."

"I have nothing to say to you," Emma snapped, spitting on the green face grinning wickedly at her.

The witch, her face contorting in anger, instantly wiped the fluid on her skin on the back of her hand and planted her boot directly in Emma's gut. The blonde gagged and bend over, holding her stomach as she felt the bruise form. Letting herself fall back into her thoughts, she fought the pain until it grew to be too much and she passed out with newly cracked ribs.

That afternoon, in Regina's cell, more bruises were formed. The violence brought the witch relief and pleasure. In a way, the punishment brought Regina relief as well. It came as a distraction that directed her attention to the physical pain over the emotional.

"Will you ever just leave me alone to rot here?" Regina moaned softly, doubled over on all fours as blood trickled from the wound on her forehead.

"For today, I will."

Only when the witch left did Regina begin to cry.

* * *

The plan took weeks to form fully in Emma's mind, but once it had, her confidence was peaked. She'd thought of everything, every way the scenario could go wrong. The only thing it depended on was her own strength.

When the witch entered the room, Emma moved quickly. Mustering her confidence, she slammed the door shut and blasted it with magic, locking the cell from the inside. Once the door was closed, she shut her eyes and held out her hands toward the witch and prayed.

Surprised by her own strength, she watched as the spell she'd cast bound the witch's body and held her against the wall.

"HOW?" the witch screamed. "How is this possible?"

"I'm the savior," Emma said, forcing herself to the believe the words she wasn't sure were true.

Finally, she grinned as she struggled to hold herself in a standing position. (Her ribs were still broken.) She couldn't help but feel proud of herself for accomplishing what seemed like the impossible. On her own, just as Regina had taught her, she'd managed to bind the woman with magic. Although she'd been confident, she'd still had doubts about her own abilities. Finally successful, her mission nearly complete, she unlocked the door, leaving the witch stuck against the wall. Once out of the cell, she locked it again and ran down the hallway. Lost but determined, she searched for Regina.

Distracted from her task by a sound she'd never heard before - strange, heartbreaking sobs she didn't recognize - she hurried around a corner in search of its source. When she found it, her mouth fell open.

"Regina?"

The woman lifted her gaze and sat up, her hands covered in dirt.

"Emma?"

Using her magic to unlock the cell, Emma rushed in and knelt beside the queen, wincing at the pain of the quick movement.

"Regina."

Her arm wrapped around the brunette's shoulders as she pressed their foreheads together.

"I thought she was going to kill you," Emma breathed.

"That wouldn't matter," Regina said, wiping her eyes.

"Regina," Emma whispered. "Is it true?"

The queen looked into the saviors eyes and asked, voice choking, "Is what true?"

"Do you really love me?"

At first, Regina couldn't speak, but when she saw the pained look in Emma's eyes, she knew she had to tell the truth.

"Yes," she told her. "Emma, I've always loved you."

"The bitch said that you... that you prayed that I would see your love in the moon each night."

"It's true," Regina admitted anxiously, looking away.

"My window was too low to see the moon here," Emma said softly, lifting Regina's chin and looking into her eyes, "but when she told me, I looked for it anyway."

Emma wrapped her arms around Regina and kissed her forehead.

"I love you, too, Regina."


End file.
